Davis denies acting alone on port CEO's pay

But no one else on port recalls pay memo

By KRISTEN MILLARES BOLT, P-I REPORTER

Published 10:00 pm, Wednesday, April 18, 2007

(Editor's note: This story has changed since it was originally published. Any notes taken at an executive session are subject to disclosure, with redactions of areas specifically exempted under the state Public Record law. An earlier version said any notes would not be subject to disclosure.)

Port of Seattle Commissioner Pat Davis categorically denied on Wednesday having acted improperly or independently in signing a memo to extend retired Chief Executive Mic Dinsmore's salary by up to one year past his retirement date in mid-March.

"Anything I did as President in 2006 only memorialized an agreement made in employer-employee discussions -- Commission and CEO -- that would subsequently need to be placed on a public agenda for ratification in public," Davis wrote in an e-mailed statement Wednesday. "If some commissioners think they remembered it in a different way, that is their call."

Three of Davis' fellow commissioners -- Commission President John Creighton, Vice President Lloyd Hara and Secretary Alec Fisken -- rebutted her claims Wednesday that they had been party to any discussions regarding Dinsmore's severance package and had mutually decided to extend payment of his $339,841 annual salary.

"We never discussed it, and it was never brought up, like we said before," Hara said. "I can't comment on something that never happened -- this is such a wholly made-up set of stories that I can't believe it."

Port spokesman Mick Shultz said the discussions took place on Jan. 10 and June 8 of last year, when the full five-member board of commissioners met privately with Dinsmore in closed-door executive sessions.

No other staffers were present at the meeting, Shultz said.

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State law does not require minutes to be taken in executive session, though notes taken at such sessions would be subject to disclosure, with redactions made for subjects exempted from being made public under the state Public Records Act.

"What is absolutely untrue is the allegation that I unilaterally (and underhandedly) made any decision about the CEO's employment terms," Davis wrote in her statement. "I did not, I could not, and I would not."

A majority of commissioners disagreed.

"I think that is probably a lie," Fisken said, after being read Davis' statement. "There is nothing there that explains why she would sign the letter without the public authorization to do so -- she could not legally sign the letter until it had been done publicly, and she knows that."

Dinsmore could not be reached for comment, but a port spokesman said Tuesday that no payments had been made -- or could, unless and until the commission took a public vote on the matter.

Commission policy requires that any such agreement go before a full public vote before being implemented, and no public meetings are scheduled on this topic at present.

Though discussions of issues such as personnel, real estate and legal risk can take place in closed-door, executive sessions, a signature approving a commission action is supposed to occur only after a formal and public vote has been taken by the full commission.

"I don't care to speculate how a commissioner with 20 years of experience felt it was proper to unilaterally sign a document before it was put to a full commission vote in public," Creighton said.

In her statement, Davis said: "I am deeply offended to be accused of an independent or unilateral action, with the implication that I did something illegal."

All of the commissioners, except Davis, said they had never seen the memo, signed by Davis and Dinsmore and dated Oct. 10, 2006, before last week.

Commissioner Bob Edwards declined to comment directly on Davis' statement because he was "reluctant to say anything because of potential liability for the port.

"As far as I know, Mic is not getting paid (based on this memo), and there is nothing scheduled to come in front of the commission with regards to additional compensation," Edwards said.

Port sources say the document would not have come to light except that Dinsmore sought, and was refused, those payments.

New Port CEO Tay Yoshitani declined to comment directly, except to say the matter would be brought before the board and, when and if appropriate, before the public.

Washington state Auditor Brian Sonntag questioned the legality of paying Dinsmore a salary once he was retired, saying his unofficial opinion was that such an action would almost certainly be illegal and considered a gift of public funds.

Yoshitani took the helm of the port in March, two months after Dinsmore announced his intent to join the Seattle office of Milwaukee-based hedge fund Stark Investments.

Aside from the disputed salary extension, Dinsmore has $858,617 in two retirement accounts, including $431,231 in port contributions, and is due a $107,000 annual pension, according to a rough port calculation in October.

"One thing I am very encouraged by is the response by individual port commission members that they want to visit this, and essentially do what is right, openly and publicly, which is my biggest concern," Sonntag said.

The Port of Seattle is a local governing body that manages the seaport, Sea-Tac Airport, marinas and a real estate division with the support of a tax levy on King County homeowners that will total $68.3 million this year. "Somebody has got to watch out for the public dollar," Sonntag said. "If the port does that, terrific. If they don't, I will."